3 replies to this topic

[ScubaGypsy]

Ever since reading Jule Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea as a child, I've had a fascination with the concept of living under the sea. This was further fueled by my enjoyment of Cousteau's book World without Sun which documented his Conshelf II habitat adventures in the Red Sea.

In 1988, I did a 3 hour "Mini Adventure" tour of the 30' deep Jules Undersea Lodge in Key Largo, FL. I returned in 1989 for their Aquanaut package which included an overnight stay from 11 am until 9 am the next morning. To this day this facility remain as the only operating commercial underwater habitat.

The only operating research habitat is Aquarius which is NOAA supported while operated by the University of North Carolina Wilmington. It too is in Key Largo but is in 60' of water.

Supposedly there are two more commercial underwater hotels to be opened by the end of 2007. One is to be constructed 50' deep off of Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas and is called Poseidon Undersea Resorts. I say supposedly because the announced opening has continued to be pushed back further and further for several years now. The other is Hydropolis which is to be 65' below the surface of the Arabian Gulf, just off the Jumeirah Beach coastline in Dubai.

An undersea restaurant called Ithaa was opened in April 2005 as part of the Hilton Maldives Resort and Spa. It is 15 feet deep in the Indian Ocean.

There are also at least two other submerged and flooded habitats that I am aware of that are available for sport diving. One is Sublimnos which is a shore dive in Prince Edward Bay. This 30' deep structure was originally built in 1970. I have plans to visit here during summer 2006.

The other is the remains of Cousteau's 1963 Conshelf II habitat in the Red Sea at a depth of 33' at Sha’ab Rumi. This is the famed habitat featured in his 1965 book and 1964 Academy and Oscar Award winning documentary film World without Sun.

Are there others out there that folks may know of? Has this topic also been of interest to others?

[Desert_Diver]

Yep, I did the overnight Jules' trip about 3 years ago, after a week diving in Key Largo. What they forgot to mention was that the air conditioner would be cranked up MAX to dehumidify the air. I can handle 105 in the shade without wilting, but I wasn't prepared for the deep cold inside the habitat. Brrrrr. I think I had all the blankets in the hab wrapped around me that night.

As I was kicked back watching a DVD that evening, a crowd of NOAA 'newbies' stopped by and popped their heads up in the moon pool. They were on a series of orientation dives just before heading out to Aquarius, and Jules' was on their list of 'things to do'. Maybe they just wanted to see the difference between the old La Chalupa hab and the newer one that they were headed to.... Thankfully, most of the muck they'd kicked up settled by the next morning, 'cos the vis later that evening was down to a few feet. Made for an interesting night dive in limited viz. At least you can't get lost in the little cove that the hab's in.

There was another series of old habs the Navy used to run, dunno what they're up to now:

http://en.wikipedia....EALAB_(US_Navy)

[ScubaGypsy]

There was another series of old habs the Navy used to run, dunno what they're up to now:

http://en.wikipedia....EALAB_(US_Navy)

I believe that the Sea Lab I habitat is now outside in a state of decay in front of the Museum of Man in the Sea in Panama City, FL.

Edited by ScubaGypsy, 18 April 2006 - 08:45 PM.

[ScubaGypsy]

This is a year old thread that I am rehashing as I have recently found a number of interesting links.

The Ithaa Undersea Restaurant in the Indian Ocean has been in the news with a video that a couple made while dining as well as a powerpoint link showing the installation and current views. Although Ithaa continues to be reported as the Worlds First Undersea Restaurant, there is another undersea restaurant called The Red Sea Star. This restaurant is located 5 meters below sea level in the Red Sea, 70 meters off the shore of Eilat, Israel. It required 4 years of design and fabrication before it was completed in 1999. It is considerably larger than the Ithaa as it can accomodate up to 105 guests while Ithaa seats just 14 people.

Popular Science had a December 2006 article and computer animated video for the Poseidon Underwater Hotel where they were forecasting a September 2008 opening. According to Sundays (March 18, 2007) New York Times, this hotel is now scheduled for an opening no sooner than early 2009. This same article also stated that the Dubai Hydropolis underwater hotel is on hold pending “land acquisition” and probably won’t be finished before the current opening date, set for 2008. CNN also had a February 7, 2007 story on their website that the Hydropolis will likely extend their planned 2008 opening.

Apparently China is also reporting that they plan to build a luxury underwater hotel in an abandoned quarry. The Shanghai Shimao Wonderland will be in Sheshan on the outskirts of the city with an estimated 2009 opening. Some artists pictures were posted in December 2006.

But in the meantime, Scuba Gypsy and sons have a reservation for an April overnight visit to Jules' Undersea Lodge in Key Largo as they celebrate their 21st year in continuous operation! This will be the first I have been back since 1989 and will be the first time with my sons.

Edited by ScubaGypsy, 21 March 2007 - 06:39 PM.